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Canada is at a crossroads. Indigenous peoples are calling for reconciliation and a path to healing after decades of systemic racism and cultural genocide as exemplified by the residential school tragedy. The labour movement stands in solidarity with Indigenous peoples and calls for governments to move beyond words and to take action towards reconciliation. — Larry Brown, NUPGE President
Ottawa (21 June 2021) — The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) stands in solidarity with First Nations, Inuit and Métis people across the country on National Indigenous Peoples Day, June 21.
Discovery of Indigenous children's bodies another example of harm inflicted on families
The stark light cast on the residential school system by the discovery of 215 bodies of Indigenous children buried at the Kamloops Indian Residential School has made this National Indigenous Peoples Day a day of reflection rather than celebration. All Canadians should reflect upon the terrible legacy of harm inflicted on generations of Indigenous children and their families. This harm is not just history; it is the lived reality of most Indigenous peoples in Canada.
The harm inflicted was part of cultural genocide which was carefully developed and implemented over many decades by successive governments in Canada. This was policy that was carried out on behalf of all Canadians, funded by government budgets, enforced by the RCMP and other police services and represents a collective stain on Canada. While there can be no remedy which expunges the past, we can and must move strongly towards reconciliation. We must respect the rights of Indigenous peoples to protect and preserve their cultures and languages. We must respect and enforce Canada's treaty obligations and we must acknowledge the unceded territories that were taken and are currently being occupied.
NUPGE has put out a statement on the Kamloops Indian Residential School, calling what happened there a crime against humanity. Unfortunately, this crime was not an isolated incident and the whole residential school system and the policies it reflects were all part of a larger cultural genocide that must be acknowledged as part of the history of colonization in Canada. Beyond this, concrete steps must be taken to assist survivors of the schools and their families to heal. Supports must be wide ranging and enduring as the harm is broad and enduring.
NUPGE joins all allies to fight against the ongoing wrongs Indigenous peoples face every day
As a country, we must face the racist nature of Canada's past as well as understand the economic impetus for separating Indigenous peoples from their lands. We are still attacking Indigenous peoples as they stand against extractive industries that harm the environment. Instead of embracing this stewardship of the land, governments side with industry and continue to use force and coercion.
NUPGE joins all allies who stand against these past and present wrongs. We stand with those who are demanding governments step up and act to implement reconciliation as official and funded government policy, just as the oppression was official policy and was funded by the state. There will certainly be a high cost to follow this path but it is a fraction of what Indigenous children and families continue to pay because of these abhorrent policies.